Health Science’s days numbered

[Editor’s note: This is an archived article. It was originally published on Sept. 21, 2012]

By Nick VeronicaEditor-in-Chief

The completion of Science Hall in upcoming years will put all of Canisius’ science programs under one roof. It will also make several of the old buildings irrelevant.

The school’s Health Science Building faces the highest likelihood of demolition, while the futures of the Wehle Technology Center and Horan-O’Donnell Science Building are less certain.

“When we’re able to move biology and chemistry out of Health Science, we probably would demolish that building,” school President John Hurley told The Griffin. “It just makes more sense to tear it down. [As for] Horan-O’Donnell and Wehle, I don’t know yet. We’re going to just take our time on that.”

In his long-range strategic planning forum in December 2010, Hurley told the Canisius community that Horan-O’Donnell’s facilities were “inadequate” and commented several times on the poor design of Health Science, which also has asbestos in parts of it, he said.

Wehle is a former school that sits on an awkwardly-angled parcel adjacent to Main Street and has been the subject of demolition rumors before.

Any demolition work is not expected to start until Science Hall is completed; the building construction is currently on phase two out of four.